Ruisleipä (,
rye bread
Rye bread is a type of bread made with various proportions of flour from rye grain. It can be light or dark in color, depending on the type of flour used and the addition of coloring agents, and is typically denser than bread made from wheat f ...
) is a dark
sourdough
Sourdough is a type of bread that uses the fermentation by naturally occurring yeast and lactobacillus bacteria to raise the dough. In addition to leavening the bread, the fermentation process produces lactic acid, which gives the bread its dis ...
rye bread
Rye bread is a type of bread made with various proportions of flour from rye grain. It can be light or dark in color, depending on the type of flour used and the addition of coloring agents, and is typically denser than bread made from wheat f ...
produced extensively in
Finland
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
. It is the most popular type of bread in Finland. It is a staple in
Finnish cuisine
Finnish cuisine is notable for generally combining traditional country fare and ''haute cuisine'' with contemporary continental-style cooking. Fish (food), Fish and meat (usually pork, beef or reindeer) play a prominent role in traditional Finl ...
,
and holds the status of the
national food
A national dish is a culinary Dish (food), dish that is strongly associated with a particular country. A dish can be considered a national dish for a variety of reasons:
* It is a staple food, made from a selection of locally available foodstuffs ...
, as determined by a 2017 vote. Finland celebrates ''ruisleivän päivä'' (rye bread day) on February 28.
Unlike the more internationally popular German rye breads, Finnish rye bread tends to have a less oily or moist texture. Most common variations of Finnish rye bread lack sweetness and the addition of spices like caraway, distinguishing them from Swedish counterparts. Finnish rye bread is made from whole grain rye flour, distinguishing it from bread made with lighter and finer sifted rye flour. Storage plays a crucial role in maintaining the bread's texture. Freshly consumed rye bread is thick, while bread stored for an extended period becomes thin.
Traditional rye bread shapes vary, with large, round, and thick bread being the most common. In Karelia and Savo, this type of soft rye bread, often referred to simply as ''leipä'' (bread) or ''musta leipä'' (black bread), was a weekly staple. Other regional varieties had distinct names based on grain type and acidity levels. One traditional form, called ''
reikäleipä'' (hole bread) or ''
ruisreikäleipä
Ruisreikäleipä (, rye hole-bread) is a kind of Finnish bread, a flat rye flour loaf with a hole in the middle. It is sometimes referred to as reikäleipä (), shorter term without ''ruis'' (rye) which applies also to the oat loaf with a hole.
...
'' (rye hole bread), is a characteristic of western Finland. Traditionally, it was baked in ring shapes and suspended on poles just below kitchen ceilings to dry and be stored. Dried reikäleipä could be stored over winter and required moistening before consumption. Another variant is the somewhat softer ''
limppu
Bread is a staple food of Finland. It is served with almost every meal and many different types are produced domestically.
In the Swedish-speaking Regions of Finland, region of Åland, there are other varieties of bread, the majority of which o ...
'' or ''
ruislimppu
Bread is a staple food of Finland. It is served with almost every meal and many different types are produced domestically.
In the Swedish-speaking region of Åland, there are other varieties of bread, the majority of which owe much to Swedish c ...
''.
More modern variations of rye bread, angular in shape, have become popular in Finland. Commercially, ''Vaasan Ruispala'' claims the title of Finland's most popular bread. Similar to ''reikäleipä'' but designed for single portions, it borrows elements from German rye bread, deviating from traditional Finnish textures. Competing products like
Fazer
Fazer (, ) is one of the largest corporations in the Finland, Finnish food industry. The company was founded by Karl Fazer in 1891, as a "French-Russian café" in central Helsinki. Today, it employs over 6,000 people across Finland, Sweden, Lat ...
's ''Ruispuikulat'' and Oululainen's ''Reissumies'' offer alternative shapes while maintaining a more traditional formulation than ''Ruispala''.
See also
*
Rugbrød
(, ) is a very common form of rye bread from Denmark. usually resembles a long brown extruded rectangle, no more than high, and long, depending on the bread pan in which it is baked. The basic ingredient is rye flour which will produce a p ...
*
Rúgbrauð
(, ) is an Icelandic straight rye bread. It is traditionally baked in a Pottery, pot or steamed in special wooden casks by burying it in the ground near a geyser, in which case it is known as or "hot-spring-bread". Modern is usually made in ...
*
Finnish bread
Bread is a staple food of Finland. It is served with almost every meal and many different types are produced domestically.
In the Swedish-speaking region of Åland, there are other varieties of bread, the majority of which owe much to Swedish c ...
References
{{Reflist
Finnish breads
Rye breads